PepperFritz
The Cosmic Force
Andrew, I didn't write that, Webglider did.Pepperfritz said:This is my response to your question....
Andrew, I didn't write that, Webglider did.Pepperfritz said:This is my response to your question....
Yes, but to get there, you must first be able to clearly see the kind if human-being you are right now -- hence the importance of self-examination and self-observation in the Work. Otherwise, the "changes" you make in yourself can end up being no more than cosmetic.Andrew said:...becoming the best HUman-Being you're capable of becoming is such a difficult and challenging path....
Well, I have read over your posts several times now, and am still not clear on what exactly it is you wish to accomplish. Could you please summarize that for me in one concise paragraph ?Andrew said:Any suggestions or ideas on how to start ?
You're quite right. (Uh duh. I should have re-read my OWN posts!)Andrew said:What you quoted was in question on how to start building small bouts of Courage.
YES! You absolutely hit everything that I have been trying to say to others...and to understand myself for SO LONG NOW!PepperFritz said:Okay. One thing I get from your posts is an ardent desire to COMMUNICATE with others, both as a means of learning more and of sharing with others what you know. But at the same time you feel you have poor communication skills and are generally alienated from others, and very self-conscious around them.
This in itself would explain the sense of paralysis you feel -- logically speaking there is a very real "block" between your goal and your ability to carry it out. (As T.S. Eliott said, "Between the conception and the act, falls the shadow.")
I can only speak from my own experience. My suggestion would be to forget about websites, blogs, etc. and just get down to basics, right where you live. You need to learn how to communicate with others on a very basic level, and to practice what Gurdjieff called External Consideration.
I can relate to where you are at right now. When I was not much older than you I obtained a "dream of a lifetime" entry-level position at a major publishing house. My communication skills were not much better than yours, I felt very awkward and self-conscious at editorial meetings, I had the ideas but not the ability to express and "sell" them. I was equally out of my element at the various "social/business" functions I had to attend. I had the ambition to get ahead in the business, but not the ability to do the necessary "networking". Anyways, long story short -- I made a very conscious decision to stretch myself and learn the skills I was so badly lacking. I came to realize how self-indulgent and self-absorbed my "self-consciousness" was, how it was rooted in a belief that everyone was watching every move I made, that I was the centre of attention. My new mantra became "Nobody cares". I switched my focus away from MYSELF and onto OTHERS. I gradually learned that you could keep people talking about themselves forever by simply asking them the right kind of questions. I also came to realize that I was just one of many at that editorial table shooting out ideas and brainstorming; that it didn't matter if I got shot down 20 times before one of my ideas got noticed, 'cause you're only as good as your last good idea.
So how does this relate to you? Well, I suggest you start going out of your way to COMMUNICATE with every single person you deal with on a daily basis -- not just your friends, but your neighbours, the cashier at the supermarket, the person beside you on the bus, the salesperson at the department store, etc. Use these opportunities as exercises in letting go of your own sense of self-consciousness and self-importance, and learn how to focus 100% on another human being, without interference from your own personal agenda. No matter who they are, learn to relate to them on some level, be genuinely interested in them as human beings; or as "Ra" would say "See the Creator" in them, see them as not much different from you. Instead of focussing on your own agenda (to teach others what you think they should know), focus on becoming a person who can communicate on some level with almost every human being you meet. In the process of this you will also learn External Consideration.
Not only will these exercises develop your ability to communicate with others, it will also teach you to really LISTEN to others; and to observe what they say and do -- observation skills that can then be applied to YOURSELF. You will learn to listen less to what people SAY and more to what they TALK ABOUT -- clues to their own internal "programs".
Once you have developed these skills on a very small and "local" level, then you can start to apply them in a larger sense. Then, when the opportunity arises to "share" what you know, in response to a genuine request, you will have the ability to genuinely communicate -- not your own personal agenda of what you have predetermined they need to know -- but what that person truly needs to hear at that moment in time, based on what you have observed about them and where they are in their personal development.
I hope some of this makes sense to you, and that it helps in some small way.
Andrew said:"So, are you in School?"
my response is always...
"no" which is then met with...
"oh...so your working then, right? in which my response is...
"no, I'm not currently working" then it moves onto...
"oh...so what are you DOING then?"
Robin Skynner said:Gurdjieff described his system [the Work] as a teaching belonging to the "Fourth Way".... He emphasized that it was appropriate only for those who have already reached a certain level of maturity and responsibility. He describes this level as that of the Russian obyvatel, a word usually translated as "good householder". By this he appears to have meant someone who is equal to life, is able to cope with ordinary responsibilities and duties, is reasonable shrewd and "street-wise" when dealing with the world, and can support and help others, rather than being a burden to them. At the same time he makes it clear that this could be an ordinary person, with ordinary faults and limitations.... Two people who worked closely with him once told me how Gurdjieff would handle someone who appeared unready to join his groups because of psychological immaturity. He would send them to a psychiatrist in whom he had confidence, who would send them back to him when psychotherapy had brought them to a more adequate level.... The more effective a system is in bringing about change and growth, the more effective it will be, when misused, for avoiding truth about oneself and perpetuating the existing attitudes and personality structure. This is why the Gurdjieff system, which offers the most powerful tools towards spiritual development and psychological change, seems also to be, when misunderstood, an extraordinarily effective method of avoiding the profound changes it could otherwise make possible.... (from Gurdjieff and Modern Psychology by Robin Skynner)
[/quote]Robin Skynner said:Gurdjieff described his system [the Work] as a teaching belonging to the "Fourth Way".... He emphasized that it was appropriate only for those who have already reached a certain level of maturity and responsibility. He describes this level as that of the Russian obyvatel, a word usually translated as "good householder". By this he appears to have meant someone who is equal to life, is able to cope with ordinary responsibilities and duties, is reasonable shrewd and "street-wise" when dealing with the world, and can support and help others, rather than being a burden to them. At the same time he makes it clear that this could be an ordinary person, with ordinary faults and limitations.... Two people who worked closely with him once told me how Gurdjieff would handle someone who appeared unready to join his groups because of psychological immaturity. He would send them to a psychiatrist in whom he had confidence, who would send them back to him when psychotherapy had brought them to a more adequate level.... The more effective a system is in bringing about change and growth, the more effective it will be, when misused, for avoiding truth about oneself and perpetuating the existing attitudes and personality structure. This is why the Gurdjieff system, which offers the most powerful tools towards spiritual development and psychological change, seems also to be, when misunderstood, an extraordinarily effective method of avoiding the profound changes it could otherwise make possible.... (from Gurdjieff and Modern Psychology by Robin Skynner)
Andrew said:In that respect I have a, what I feel is a very basic question, something I feel I might have been missing all along, which again is probably due to passivity, is how does one go about recognizing "lessons"?
Andrew said:I suppose more self-observation is necessary and an actual willingness to accept the fact that I may not be as "great" as I have presumed?
Andrew said:Truth be told accepting this is not easy, but it's got to be done in one way or another.